Shinhan Financial Group Co Ltd (NYSE:SHG) Short Interest Up 73.7% in May

Shinhan Financial Group Co Ltd (NYSE:SHG) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totaling 308,844 shares, a growth of 73.7% from the April 30th total of 177,832 shares. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 213,021 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Shinhan Financial Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Shinhan Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Shinhan Financial Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Shinhan Financial Group by 71.2% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 481 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Shinhan Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc grew its stake in Shinhan Financial Group by 31.3% in the 1st quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 747 shares of the bank’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Shinhan Financial Group by 6,238.5% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 824 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 811 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Shinhan Financial Group by 1,465.5% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 908 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.76% of the company’s stock.

Shinhan Financial Group Price Performance

Shinhan Financial Group stock traded up $2.57 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $64.90. 185,873 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 230,908. The company’s fifty day moving average is $64.85 and its 200-day moving average is $60.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $30.80 billion, a PE ratio of 7.05, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.93. Shinhan Financial Group has a 52 week low of $40.28 and a 52 week high of $73.40.

Shinhan Financial Group (NYSE:SHG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The bank reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter. Shinhan Financial Group had a net margin of 20.07% and a return on equity of 11.02%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Shinhan Financial Group will post 7.99 EPS for the current year.

About Shinhan Financial Group

Shinhan Financial Group is a South Korea–based financial holding company headquartered in Seoul. Established in 2001 as a banking and financial services group, it brings together a range of financial subsidiaries operating under the Shinhan brand, including commercial banking, card services, life insurance, securities and asset management businesses. The group serves both retail and corporate clients and is one of the leading diversified financial institutions in Korea.

The company’s principal activities span retail and corporate banking, credit card issuance and payment services, life insurance and related protection products, brokerage and investment banking, and asset and wealth management.